A Publication for Geospatial Professionals Issue 2016-3 Special GIS Edition

technology&more
Going with the Flow in
Floridas Wetlands
Managing Underground

Infrastructure at Europes Busiest Airport

Improving Quality of
Life in Central Africa

Creating New Apps

for Utilities

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Ron Bisio, Vice President

Trimble Geospatial

Welcome to Technology&more!
Dear Readers,
The growth of GIS has touched
people around the globe. GIS
has become one of the most
flexible and widely-used sources
of information today. Certainly, a
big part of this comes from the
expanding range of geospatial
technologies that capture, process
and analyze geographic data.
However, the major driver for
growth resides in the innovative
ways that individuals and organizations are putting GIS to work.

This special, GIS-focused issue of Technology&more highlights

professionals and organizations that are using GIS to
streamline the flow and use of geospatial information. For
each story presented, there are countless other examples of
how imagination combines with technology to transform the
way we work and live.
In this issue, you can learn how geospatial technologies are
helping airport operators to increase safety and efficiency in
the bustling, high-tech setting of Londons Heathrow airport.
Half a world away in Uganda, volunteers from Engineers
Without Borders used Trimble solutions to support plans for
a new water distribution system in a tiny village. In the U.S.,
water, gas and electric utility providers apply GIS solutions to
replace pen-and-paper data collection with automated meter
infrastructure and asset management.
In Florida, we see how Trimble and Esri solutions are put to
work to help maintain the fragile Everglades environment
while meeting the freshwater needs of the growing
population. This issue also takes us to Colorado, where a
father-and-son team tackles some longstanding questions
about the states famous peaks.
We look forward to publishing articles about how our
customers have improved productivity by collecting and
applying geospatial information. If youd like to share your
story, please send us an email: Survey_Stories@trimble.com.
Enjoy this special GIS edition of Technology&more.
Ron Bisio
Vice President, Trimble Geospatial

U.K. Pg 4
Underground Infrastructure

UGANDA Pg 12
New Water System

U.S. Pg 14
Colorado 14ers

AUSTRALIA Pg 22
Mapping and
Maintaining Footpaths

Published by:
Trimble Engineering and Construction
10368 Westmoor Drive
Westminster, Colorado 80021 USA
Phone: 720-887-6100
Fax: 720-887-6101
Email: T&M_info@trimble.com
www.trimble.com
Editor-in-Chief: Olivier Casablanca
Editorial Team: Lea Ann McNabb; Kelly Liberi;
Cecelia Fresh; Cody Cooper; Felicity Boag;
Michael Dix; Yiran Wang; Sophie Willauck;
Jocelyn Delarosa; Echo Wei; Maribel Aguinaldo;
Stephanie Kirtland; Survey and
GIS Technical Marketing Team.
Art Director: Tom Pipinou
2016, Trimble Navigation Limited. All rights reserved. Trimble, the Globe & Triangle logo, eCognition,
GeoExplorer, Juno and GPS Pathfinder are trademarks of Trimble Navigation Limited or its subsidiaries,
registered in United States Patent and Trademark Office. Floodlight, GeoXH, GeoXT, GPScorrect, NetR9,
Positions, TerraFlex, TerraSync, VRS and Zephyr are trademarks of Trimble Navigation Limited or its
subsidiaries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

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TerraFlex Helps San Jos Ready

for Big Game Bash

San Jos City Hall

Using advanced geospatial technology, the City of San Jos

conducted a mammoth cleanup campaign in record time

officials embarked on an intensive cleanup campaign

that included identifying and eliminating illegal
dumping sites.

n February 7, 2016, some 115 million football

fans turned on their TVs to watch the golden
anniversary of Americas favorite sporting
eventthe Big Game. In the San Francisco Bay Area,
a lucky 70,000 fans viewed the event from seats in the
new $1.2 billion stadium in Santa Clara.

With more than 1 million Bay Area visitors expected,

San Jos is preparing to be a major hub of activity, said
San Jos Council Member Raul Peralez, prior to the
game. One of our objectives is to leverage Big Game
opportunities such as the cleanup campaign to create
lasting benefits for a cleaner, safer city. Our hope is that
even after the game leaves, our residents and visitors will
continue to see the benefits from the program for years
to come.

San Jos, with its fine restaurants and attractions,

understood the fiscal implications of having the 50th
anniversary held at the new $1.2-billion stadium in
neighboring Santa Clara. Last years game in Phoenix
brought in over $700 million, said Kim Walesh, Director
of Economic Development for the City of San Jos. The
city anticipated a stronger economic impact since it
was the 50th anniversary game and the whole Bay Area
would be hosting it.

Cleaning Up the City

Planning for the cleanup started barely three
months before the February game; funds werent
approved until late December. Given the urgency,
city officials tapped San Jos State Universitys (SJSU)
CommUniverCity, a decade-old organization that
partners with underserved communities in central San
Jos to help create healthier, more vibrant communities,
while providing students with experience solving
neighborhood issues. CommUniverCity is a partnership
between the Community, SJSU, and the City of San
Jos. Since its founding, CommUniverCity has logged
more than 246,000 hours of community service, valued
at $5.5 million and involving some 14,600 students.

Like any good host, San Jos expected to look its best
when the crowds arrived. The city was the site of the Super
Bowl Opening Night Fueled by Gatorade show at SAP
Center downtown, where fans, players and thousands of
media from around the world would gather. Downtown
San Jos also offered a SoFA Winter Market, Ice Skating
Under the Palms, Winter at Plaza de Cesar Chavez Park and
Super San Pedro Square.
The last thing San Jos wanted visitors to see was
trash, a major problem in big cities. So San Jos
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SJSU graduate or upper-division undergraduate

students act as project coordinators to help develop
and administer service programs under city and
faculty supervision. Once funding for the cleanup
was approved, CommUniverCity assembled a
team of approximately 18 individuals, including
CommUniverCity staff, City employees, and SJSU
faculty and students.
TerraFlex is a Key Player
With the Big Game looming, project leaders knew they
had to act fast. To speed things up, they chose Trimble
TerraFlex field data capture software, a cloud-based
solution for managing and streamlining data collection
from a mobile device.
TerraFlex enabled us to quickly and effectively
assess the study area, said CommUniverCity Project
Coordinator Galadriel Burr. Once the data was
exported into GIS, we were then able to perform data
analysis and create maps for the haulers in charge of
illegal dumping removal.

CommUniverCity workers discuss data collection day schedule.

The city had already identified key hotspots as part

of a pilot program to reduce illegal dumping, which
helped CommUniverCity map out four square miles
of potential sites. Project leaders used TerraFlex to
create data collection forms with fields for features and
conditions such as location of trash (sidewalk, median,
fence line); type of trash (shopping cart, furniture,
clothing); accessibility; and whether it was electronic or
hazardous material.
Workers used their smart phones equipped with TerraFlex software.

Training the field workers was quick because TerraFlex

is simple to navigate and supports iOS, Android and
select tablet devices running Windows 7/Windows 8,
which allowed workers to use their personal phones
while collecting data. Everything is centralized in a single
device so there is no need for GPS, a camera or printed
maps. When a user opens a form, TerraFlex marks the
location on an internal map. Workers then verify the
location, fill in the fields on the form and capture at
least one geo-referenced photo. If workers are in spotty
communication areas, the app is still fully functional and
automatically synchronizes the data as soon as they are
online again.
For the cleanup campaign, project leaders wanted
minimal dropdowns on the form, yet still to have the
ability to add fields as needed, which was no problem
since templates can be edited and immediately rolled

Project workers located trash throughout the city, collecting the data
quickly and efficiently.

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out to workers to ensure continued data integrity. Data

collection was quick, efficient and accurate because there
were no handwritten notes to transcribe.
The city budgeted for up to two workers (one staff, one
student) per car and student supervision for the project;
thanks to TerraFlex, CommUniverCity needed only twoa
driver and a navigator/spotter. To expedite data collection,
however, each car had two spotters. Four cars were in the
field each day.
Scoring Field Goals
On December 28, 2015, CommUniverCity launched the
data collection. Dumping sites had been divided into
three areas, with three days allotted to complete the
documentation. Workers were in the field for an average
of six hours each day.

TerraFlex trash site overview map.

By noon on the first day, they had identified nearly 200

dumping sites. By the end of the second day, some 400
additional sites had been documented, and by the end of the
project nearly 800 sites were identified.
Before and after trash site.

As the data was collected, it was automatically synced to

a central server. This boosted productivity since workers
didnt have to return to the office for manual entry. Data
was transferred to the cloud for easy access and to keep all
project members in the field and in the office up to date on
the cleanup progress.
Once the dumping sites were identified, CommUniverCity
created maps so that GreenTeam, the Citys solid waste
contractor, could easily find the sites and clean up the illegal
dumping materials. Project leaders could also filter, sort and
export additional data by form attributes, which provided
critical information to city officials on the type of trash being
dumped or the amount of materials collected.
Because data was centralized and organized, the city
could later conduct more detailed analysis by area and
demographics. Since this project was the first phase of a more
comprehensive cleanup campaign, such detailed analysis
would be critical: San Jos plans to use the data captured as
a baseline for future assessments and community outreach,
with the goal to eventually help deter illegal dumping and
efficiently clean up illegally dumped materials.
With Trimble TerraFlex, the city not only collected the data
quickly and accurately, but more importantly, it will continue
to leverage this data to ensure a cleaner, safer city today
and in the future. Using TerraFlex, San Jos has scored a real
touchdown.
TerraFlex Illegal Dump Site form.
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Managing an Underground Maze

How Europes busiest airport keeps an eye on invisible assets

mid the whirl of activity that

occurs at a major airport
the carefully orchestrated
movement of aircraft, passengers
and cargomuch of the activity
takes place out of sight. An airports
underground infrastructure is as
complex and busy as its aboveground
facilities. Pipelines carry fuel, water,
sewage, stormwater and de-icing
fluids. Conduits contain cables for
power and control of buildings,
airfield lighting, communications and
security. Access pits and manholes
contain pumps, transformers, switchgear and other equipment needed to
keep the airport operating safely and
efficiently.
A key part keeping the underground
infrastructure operating smoothly is
knowing the where, what and how
of thousands of objects. Modern
airport management can leverage
geospatial technologies and information management to control
costs and improve productivity
in operations and maintenance.
Geospatially enabled systems for
assets and facilities can track an
objects location, function, operating
status and maintenance information.

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But asset management goes beyond

managing expenses. The constant
work to maintain and improve airport
facilities often entails digging holes
and trenches in areas crisscrossed
by pipes and cables. An unexpected
encounter with an underground
line can result in costly accidents or
delays.
At Londons Heathrow airport, the
sheer density of the installation
complicates the work of keeping track
of underground assets. Heathrow, the
third-busiest passenger airport in
the world, is actually compact when
compared to other major airports.
Heathrows two runways and five
terminals occupy 1,227 hectares
(3,032 acres), compared to Frankfurt
International Airport and New Yorks
JFK, which each cover roughly 2,100
hectares (5,200 acres) while handling
fewer passengers.
According to Andy Rhoades, Heathrows head of service protection,
the crowded airfield contains 45,000
manholes and thousands of miles
of underground lines. We have 13
different utilities ranging from gas and
potable water, storm and sewers, up to

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the high-pressure fire networks, aeronautical ground lighting networks, and

electrical networks at high, medium
and low voltage. We have district
heating and high temperature water
networks as well. Rhoades said that
Heathrows extensive GIS uses Trimble
Juno and GeoExplorer 6 and 7 Series
handhelds to provide positioning
information for maintenance and
inspection teams. The accurate positioning helps reduce risk of accidents
during the roughly 1,200 excavations
that are underway at Heathrow at any
one time.
Even using GNSS, the density of
Heathrows infrastructure can introduce
challenges in identifying and managing
specific assets. To solve the issue,
Heathrow turned to radio frequency
identification (RFID). Rhoades said that
in 2003 they identified a need to tag
airport assets with unique identifiers
to better understand their life cycle
and to help improve efficiency both
for everyday maintenance and urgent
unplanned works.
Heathrow teams developed a solution
that enabled them to attach RFID tags
to items such as runway centerline

Use of geospatial technologies has produced large improvements in

preventing accidental contact with underground services.

lights, manholes and other buried

assets. Using a Trimble handheld with
RFID capability, maintenance teams
can quickly confirm they are working
on the proper asset. The solution can
track status and activities related to
an asset as well.
For example, Heathrow has more
than 22,000 light fixtures in its
airfield ground lighting network
(AGL), which provides guidance
for pilots and vehicles on runways,
taxiways and terminal areas. Using
RFID, information is stored in a tag
attached to each fixture. An RFID
reader will identify a specific light
and confirm the location. It can
record that the fitting was removed
and track it through the maintenance process. The important bit is
when you install a fitting, Rhoades
said. It records when and where
the fitting is installed. It connects
via Bluetooth to the digital torque
wrench to provide torque settings
that ensure the fitting is installed
correctly. The system counts and
records that youve done the right
number of bolts and confirms that
youve applied the correct torque. At
the end of a shift, information can be
reviewed to verify proper installation.

A map of Heathrows underground utilities illustrates the complex,

concentrated infrastructure. There are more than 45,000 manholes on
the property, or roughly one manhole every 16 m (54 ft).

The approach eliminates the need

for follow-up checking and reduces
labor and runway downtime.
RFID has produced other savings for
Heathrow. Rhoades explained that
Heathrows manholes (known as
pits) use a standard design and cover
to support the weight of passing
aircraft. As a result, crews cant easily
tell if a pit contains a transformer,
storm drain or other equipment. It
can take an hour to get a pit open,
Rhoades said. You can spend the
night lifting pits before you find the
one you are looking for. With RFID,
crews get to the right location the
first time. You can very quickly find
exactly what youre looking for. The
information displayed on the Trimble
handhelds is not only location; RFID
tells crews exactly what assets are in
the pit. Often working in darkness or
bad weather, crews appreciate the
added confidence in locating and
opening the correct pit.
As Heathrow continues to update
and redevelop its infrastructure,
Rhoades is improving the use of
RFID and geospatial information.
Construction teams now map and
attach tags to fire mains and valves
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as they are installed. Weve got maps

on the handhelds, and the RFID tags
hold all the information. They can
tell you what the service is, depth
below ground and what material it
is. Data from the RFID is delivered to
the airports maintenance database
where it can be utilized in an array
of tasks for planning, construction,
operations and maintenance.
The improved tracking of underground
utilities is producing measurable benefits. In 2004, roughly 1.8 percent of
construction or maintenance work at
Heathrow had service strikes attributed
to inaccurate information about the
underground services. In 2013, that
number had decreased to roughly 0.2
percent, a nearly tenfold improvement.
Work continues to map and catalog
Heathrows underground utilities.
About 74 percent of the known
infrastructure is mapped with
accuracy within 500 mm (1.6 ft).
When the accurate locations are
combined with RFID-based information management, the airport
is well on its way to an accurate,
cost-effective system for infrastructure management.

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Shining a Spotlight
on Stormwater
Field and office technologies help improve
visibility and management of stormwater systems

lthough the city of Bozeman, Montanas stormwater

system has been silently producing front-page news for
decades, it has typically only flowed into the spotlight
because of an incident or an emergency.

works department, prepared for the field work scheduled for

that spring. After months of research, Mehrens developed a
set of 13 unique stormwater data layers such as manholes,
pipes and inlets. Each layer included its own set of critical
attributes such as the size of a manholes cover, its depth and
its width. He then created a customized data dictionary in the
Geo 6000s software, which would prompt the user to record
objects unique attributes.

That all changed when the Montana Department of

Environmental Quality (DEQ) audited the department and
determined that the lack of a comprehensive stormwater
system map was a violation of its federally-issued MS4
(Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System) permit. As serious
as the infringement was, it also helped launch a long overdue
mapping project in 2012 that would bring the underground
workhorse to light.

Each morning a two-person field crew would consult a

combination of in-house aerial photos and paper maps to
determine which area of the city they would survey. Once
on site, one person would ready the Geo 6000, set the unit
on each stormwater feature and record the point, while the
other would drive to the next mapping section. While the
positioning data was being logged, the technician would
also record critical attributes pertinent to the asset as well
as environmental surroundings such as the presence of a
curb and its type. After all feature data was collected, the
mapper would move to the next set of objects and repeat
the process. Typically the field crew could map about 200
features in an 8-hour day.

Nearly two years later, Bozemans GIS department had

not only inventoried and mapped 95 percent of its
entire stormwater network, it had also created a detailed
knowledge base to readily understand the what and where
of any given asset at any time. And the new data-driven
framework has enabled the city to transform stormwater
from obscurity to a $1.2-million utility.
Data-Driven Solution
The objective of the $200,000 stormwater mapping project
was to collect detailed, spatial-based data that could inform
business decisions and be readily integrated into operations.
Resources were tightthe GIS department had a project team
of two and just one year to achieve the goal.

Using data from a nearby Trimble NetR9 GNSS base

station and Trimble GPS Pathfinder Office software,
Mehrens would process the Geo 6000 data within one
hour of receiving it from the field. Once processed and
checked, he exported the data into the Esri database
and assigned unique facilities IDs to each feature
collected. Because of the software development he did
previously, some of the stormwater layers in the GIS were
automatically populated with the GPS data attributes,
creating an efficient workflow.

Given the schedule, data requirements and safety elements, the City acquired two Trimble GeoExplorer 6000
series GNSS handheld units. The handhelds would allow
them to be highly mobile, efficiently collect centimeteraccuracy data and readily integrate the location data
with their GIS system.

Mehrens and his team mapped more than 10,000 features

in just four months. They captured about 95 percent of the
existing infrastructure including 93 miles (150 km) of pipe,
1,276 manholes and 3,059 inlets.

Field of Discovery
In January 2013, Kyle Mehrens, a GIS technician in the public

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Stormwater Anew
That detailed data led the way to their ArcGISbased interactive stormwater map that offers a
dynamic, layered blueprint of Bozemans entire
stormwater network, down to the individual
inlet or manhole. Publicly available online, users
can access the map, click on any asset feature
and view its associated attributes.

The project spurred outreach initiatives including education on GIS, GPS and
stormwater.

Having such an accurate, digital and visual

record of the stormwater system has been a
great productivity boon and communication
tool for the whole public works department. For
example, Bozemans TV crewsthe teams that
use remote controlled video cameras to assess
the structural integrity of the underground
pipelinesproactively use the map to determine
pipe sizes before going on site. Knowing pipe
sizes in advance ensures they have the proper
camera wheel sets to fit inside each pipe, saving
valuable time in the field.
The map enables Bozemans contracting
community to identify where they need to
erect stormwater control measures around
their construction sites. Emergency responders
can consult the map to track and monitor the
path of a pollution event and prevent it from
reaching waterways. Planners use the map in
their consultations with developers to ensure
stormwater practices are implemented. And
citizens can use the map to report an event or
to talk intelligently about stormwater concerns
they have.
Stormwater can now be integrated with
the citys asset management system. This
integration enables crews to plan, track and
update maintenance and repair work on any
given piece of the network. And it also provides
the ability to achieve further permit compliance
because they have the data and tools to
produce detailed maintenance reports, a major
component to comply with regulations.

The interactive ArcGIS map provides public access to stormwater asset data.

Perhaps most significantly, the mapping project

has provided the factual platform to drive the
expansion of the stormwater program. With a
complete inventory of the infrastructure and its
condition, Mehrens and colleagues were able
to successfully propose a 15-year, $1.2-million,
multi-faceted improvement plan designed to
regain the systems health.

GIS helped pinpoint trouble spots such as this polluted stormwater discharging
into Bozeman Creek.
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With their new comprehensive stormwater

dataset, public works personnel also have the
tools and knowledge to determine if no news
is truly good news.

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Capturing Amaches
Life Story

Amaches last standing structure is surrounded by flags marking locations of artifacts.

very other summer since 2008, Bonnie Clark has

brought students and volunteers to the Amache
Japanese American WWII internment camp in
southeastern Colorado to hold history in their hands.

10,000 people of Japanese descent had passed through

the camp.
Today, barbed wire still rings the central camp area, along
with most building foundations, and remnant landscaping
created by Amache internees, including living trees they
planted. As one of the most well-preserved relocation camps
in the U.S., Amache offers untold treasures to archaeologists
and historians. Clarks crew strives to identify and protect
as many as they can, and to share their research findings
through interpretive displays for the many visitors drawn to
this National Historic Landmark.

Although these field seasons have yielded thousands of

remnants of the internees confined experience, the teams
ability to spatially connect their findings has garnered the
most significant fruit: the ability to write the collective life
story of the former camp.
Every field study brings us new insight into how the internees adapted under duress, says Clark, associate professor at
the University of Denvers (DU) department of anthropology.
However, all of the objects we have discovered would lack
any context without the ability to accurately map their
as-found location with GPS technology. The ability to map
allows us to see activity in space. For example, finding four
marbles within a mess hall garden tells us that this was a
play area for kids. Those connections are key to accurately
documenting the internees experience at Amache.

To achieve that goal, as well as to provide hands-on teaching

moments to students, Clark launched a four-week, intensive,
archaeological field school in 2008. Since then, 39 undergraduate and graduate students and 25 volunteersmany
of whom are former interneeshave contributed to the
digging and surveying at Amache.
According to Clark, the intense timeline coupled with 29
city blocks to survey, graduate student-led teams and temperatures that regularly rise above 100 F (38 C), has made
Trimble GPS technology a critical element for their success.

Teachable Moments
Opened in late August 1942, Amache was located 1 mile
(1.6 km) outside the small town of Granada, about four
hours south of Denver. One of 10 such internment camps,
Amaches 1-mile-square (2.6 km2) core contained 29
barracks blocks, each of which contained 12 barracks, a
recreational hall, a mess hall and a combined bath house
and latrine. At its peak, Amache housed just over 7,300
detainees; by the time it closed in October 1945, more than
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Locating and Mapping Life

The 2014 field season brought a mixed crew of 17 to Amache
to predominantly focus on 3 unexplored barracks blocks.
Clark used existing control points to establish control
with the GeoXH 6000 handheld, and to confirm the
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validity of the GPS data, she tested the accuracy of the data at
a range of observation times. At 90 seconds, the accuracy over a
stationary point was 10 cm (0.3 ft)sufficient for their research and,
most importantly, their time crunch.
By 6:30 each morning teams were in the field. Walking at 2-m (6-ft)
intervals, they meticulously searched the ground for artifacts such
as shoe heels, porcelain pieces, shards of glass, or remnants of toys,
as well as features of interest such as sidewalks, activity areas or
landscaping. When they found an object, they marked it with a pin
flagit was not atypical to have 200 flags clustered in one block.
Once the block was flagged out, the crew then returned to collect
data on each item. At each flag, one person analyzed the item, while
another photographed and logged it, and the third recorded its
exact coordinates with the GPS handheld.

Students comb the fields in search of artifacts.

Each afternoon the graduate student supervisors performed quality

control on the GPS data and uploaded it to a colleague off-site who
used Trimble GPS Pathfinder Office software to further perform
quality control and post process the information. He exported the
data into GIS software to create user-friendly maps, enabling them to
visualize their findings and plan more field work.
By the end of the field season, Clark and her teams had surveyed 3
blocks, bringing the total explored blocks to 21. They identified,
documented and mapped about 500 artifacts and 50 features with
the Trimble GPS devices.
Singular Stories, One Collective Experience
With each new find, they dug a little deeper into the 7,000 personal
stories scattered across the wind-swept terrain.

A usu, used to pound mochi, a sweet sticky rice traditionally prepared for the New Year.

Stories such as those undoubtedly left in what remains of a sumo

ring, found in a noticeably flat area within an otherwise rolling topography. Referencing that against oral history and photographs,
Zachary Starke, whose thesis research focuses on traditions practiced
in camp, was certain they had found the ring.
There is the back-story to a handful of small childrens toys, including
a handmade, miniature glass pitcher lying in the thick sand next to
a Christian churchglass work they had not seen beforeleading
them to believe it was a make-shift play area similar to a sand box.

A significant surprise of the season was the remains of what Clarks
crew believes was a laundry line, a rarity in the camp. Positioned
behind one of the barracks were lumber, wire and buttons. Further
convincing evidence was the oral history from a gentleman whose
mother had asked him to collect lumber for a line from a nearby
construction area. The laundry line remains were found behind the
barracks in which he lived.

Bonnie Clark uses the Trimble handheld while student Coby Main digs.

Clark will have to wait until the next field school to uncover more
of the Amache story. Until then, she will continue to connect the
spatial dots of life left at and under her feet to weave together a
dignified example of the human spirit at a decidedly undignified
time in American history.
Excavated remains of a Japanese bath called a furo.
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Asset Mapping, Utilities

Management,
and the Mobile
Workforce

How a service provider for utilities implemented a mobile app to

clock up efficiencies in advanced metering systems

he firm SL-serco optimizes systems for water, electric, and

gas utility providers through data analysis and process
consultation for their automated meter infrastructure
(AMI) and advanced meter reading (AMR) systems. The companys
services include process consulting, training, and data evaluation.
The company employs 30 people throughout the US, with nine of
those based in the home office in St. Anthony, Minnesota. Reed
Sutter is the manager for AMI/AMR systems support.
The AMI systems that SL-serco supports rely on accurate data,
according to Sutter. Due to the critical nature of utility operations, utilities need rapid response to any issues that arise,
he said. SL-serco coordinates field activities for audits, repairs
and data collection; then leverages the resulting data to help
utilities optimize their advanced metering systems. All these
activities are essential for ensuring that metering systems are
healthy and efficient.
Sutter and his teams have long relied on electronic data
collection rather than pen and paper, but until recently their
efforts to increase efficiency were hindered by an inability to
combine old data with new data quickly. You have to marry
new information to old records so that account data can stay
consistent, said Sutter. In the beginning we tried lots of different technology tools, but their collective inability to integrate
data was always limiting.

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Greater Data Collection Efficiency from the Get-Go

In 2013 a project arose where SL-serco was contracted to record
the assets of a water utility as part of a study for a proposed
fixed-base metering system. To audit assets such as water
towers and pump houses, SL-serco staff had to collect attributes such as GPS location, structure height, the presence of a
power source, and altitude. Because they required accurate GPS
coordinates, Sutter and his team for the first time adopted the
Trimble TerraFlex data collection app. They run TerraFlex on a
variety of devices, including iPhones and iPads, and Windows
Mobile and Android devices.
Collecting GPS coordinates immediately created opportunities
for SL-serco to increase efficiency around data collection just
by more accurately locating meters on a property. For example,
if a water utility account holder owns a 100-acre property, the
city may only provide one GPS location for the entire 100 acres,
and that point may not necessarily match the meters location.
Now SL-sercos process can attribute the GPS coordinate to the
meter, not just the general property point that the city has for
the property.
However, the first immediate benefit Trimble TerraFlex provided
was via its customizable form capabilitySutter now quickly
creates forms in TerraFlex with all the different kinds of fields he
wants. If a form needs modifying mid-project, Sutter makes the

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changes from where he is located. The updated form is

pushed out to staff the next time they sync up; this way
data collection is always consistent.
The forms are really easy to use. I get very few calls with
questions once the utilitys guys are out in the field, said
Sutter. Armed with this customized tool that meets their
needs exactly, the utilitys teams can collect meter data
quickly and efficiently. The data is then automatically
transferred via TerraFlex to the Cloud for access by their
office colleagues.
Trimble TerraFlex allows Sutter to enter data while offline
and then simply synchronize his device when cell coverage is again available. When he needs to geo-reference
an asset but GPS isnt being logged, the process is again
quite simpleSutter manually places the dot onscreen
when collecting the data; later he adds the GPS location
via a Google satellite image.
Old and New Data Integrated at Last
Things got even better in 2015 when TerraFlex Advanced
was introduced, said Sutter. Finally we could combine
our old and new data and put TerraFlex to work on a lot
more jobs.
For many auditing tasks, its very important for SL-serco
to have tracking capability for certain events; e.g., for
meter change-outs, where a new meter replaces an
old one. Now by starting with an existing record we
can import previous data and attach new installed
meter data to it just by creating a new form, said Sutter.
When a utility field technician inputs data, theyre just
adding information to an existing record.

As soon as SL-serco adopted

TerraFlex they experienced
productivity gains. Running on a
variety of devices, TerraFlex made
field data collection much easier
with its customized forms and
real-time data sharing.

The integration of old and new data makes re-routing

sequences with GPS coordinates faster too. SL-sercos
AMR customers typically hold a set of accounts sequenced in a particular order for maintenance. Often
the historically assigned sequence is not the most
efficient one possible, but by collecting accurate GPS
coordinates for existing meters in TerraFlex, SL-serco
can create a faster sequence, or route, to follow based
on the location information. Better routes save time on
maintenance projects.
SL-serco Gains Off-the-Meter Efficiency
By using an advanced-technology solution for collecting data and making the most of accurate GPS
locations, SL-serco utility clients have transformed their
work processes with off-the-meter efficiency. Our
clients are able to use TerraFlex Advanced for repair,
re-routing sequences, data collection for prop studies,
and more. Its really simple to use and very reliable.

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On the Rise:

Quality of Water, Quality of Life

From Northeast U.S. to Central Africa

banda is a small rural village of about 1,100 people in

southern central Uganda, located 45 minutes from the
closest town of Mityana. There is no electricity or reliable
source of drinking water. But thanks to the work of some engineering students, thats about to change.
Since 2009, volunteer members of the Northeastern University
Chapter of Engineers Without Borders (EWB-USA NEU) have
been working on providing a village-wide, water system for
the community of Bbanda. The need for clean water in many
developing countries, especially in Africa, is nothing new. Residents of Bbanda, many of them children, may walk two miles
round-trip every day to fetch water that is often unsanitary. Because the children are often the ones fetching this water, they
spend time walking to the spring instead of in the classroom.
In 2009, most water sources in Bbanda were open springs located throughout the village. These springs were often shared
with animals, served as a breeding ground for mosquitoes and
almost always tested positive for E. coli. At the time there were
two borehole wells, one at the school and one at the clinic. Two
additional boreholes were drilled after 2009 as a temporary
solution. Alex Piers, electrical engineering and physics student,
has been program director of Northeasterns EWB-USA Chapter
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since 2014. When the boreholes work, they work well, said
Piers, But they break a lot. The need for a water delivery system
is plain to see.
The projects goal is to establish 12 community tap stands
dispersed throughout the village. Once these 12 tap stands are
in place, almost every house will be within 400 m ( mile) of
fresh water, shortening the present commute by as much as
2 km (1.5 miles) for some residents. A generator-driven pump
will draw water from a well drilled by the EWB-USA to a storage
tank on a hill. Gravity will carry water from the storage tank
down to the tap stands across the village.
Under the guidance of retired engineer Timothy McGrath,
members of the EWB-USA Chapter have made 11 trips to
Uganda. In the early trips, the need for quality water was so
dire that temporary relief projects were established. Along with
the two boreholes, the team installed and rehabilitated several
rainwater-harvesting systems at the schools.
In the first stages of the master project, the team geo-located
prominent structures in the town using a Trimble GeoXT
handheld GNSS receiver. The data was processed using
Trimble GPS Pathfinder Office software. The newly formed
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town map included the school, religious buildings and houses, as

well as existing wells and springs. As the project progressed, the new
pipelinesincluding enclosures and manholeswere geo-located
to make an as-built plan of the new water system.
Excitement filled Piers voice as he shared that the group is close to
completing the project. We are extremely close to commissioning
phase one, he said. EWB-USA NEU has already drilled and coordinated
construction on the storage tank, as well as five tap stands. Commissioning phase one will activate these five community tap stands.
Phase two will add seven tap stands at the outskirts of the village.
The group has a local supplier for the pump and generator; they are
now waiting for funds, which will come from a variety of sources such
as grants from the university, personal donations, corporate sponsors,
and their partner NGO. Working with local suppliers means that
money paid for parts and labor will stay in Uganda. This also ensures
that a local mechanic will be familiar with these machines and able to
make necessary repairs should the pump or generator fail. It will only
take a few days for installation and testing before the system can be
activated. Basically we just need to buy a pump and generator and
install them, said Piers, then we can get safe water to these people.
EWB-USA NEU has seen a tremendous amount of community input
and involvement since the project began in 2009. Most of the water
pipeline has been trenched and laid by the villagers themselves.
Whats been lacking in this community, as with most EWB-USA
project areas, are the engineering skills to develop a system and see
it to completion. Since its incorporation in 2002, EWB-USA has been
connecting engineering students with developing countries in order
to find solutions to their infrastructure needs. Often times the need is
clean drinking water. The Northeastern University chapter, located in
Boston, Massachusetts, is one of several across the country. It consists
mostly of civil engineers but its student members represent many of
the schools disciplines.
Responsibility for maintaining the system will eventually fall to the
communitys water board, a group of 17 members from different
facets of the Ugandan community. However, in the year following
the systems activation, EWB-USA NEU will return to test and monitor
the water quality. This will ensure a smooth and successful transfer of
ownership and responsibility. Sustainability is one of EWB-USA NEUs
top priorities.
Piers said that community involvement with the project has been a
huge part of its success. Community members have been working
right along with the engineers, performing much of the labor work,
especially when the EWB-USA NEU team is gone. Piers noted that its
obvious the residents value the system and want to keep it up and
running, he said, They see the new system as a major improvement
to their quality of life.
UPDATE:
Phase one of the project was commissioned on schedule in May,
2015, and the first five tap stands are operating. Work is continuing
on phase two.
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Map
Check

A father and son settle a controversy

in the Colorado mountains
Arthur Harris records GPS data on the summit of Grizzly Peak. The GPS antenna, attached to his backpack, helped him collect precise data.

rthur Harris got an early start as a mountain

climber. Before he celebrated his fourteenth
birthday, he had already stood on the summits
of more mountains than most people will climb in
a lifetime. Beginning at the ripe age of two, Arthur
accompanied his father Doug on mountain hikes in
New Englands White Mountains. By the time Arthur
was six, he and Doug were hiking and climbing almost
every weekend. Most of those hikes included GPS.
The Harrises have used GPS personal navigation units
for years. They use it in their hobby of high-pointing,
in which they go to the highest point in each state
they visit. Each states high points are referenced
with latitude and longitude. These coordinates make
it possible for visitors to use GPS to navigate to the
desired location. In some states, its a short walk to
a knoll or hilltop. In others, however, the trek can be
much more difficult.
In addition to supporting their efforts in high-pointing,
Doug said that GPS has gotten them out of some
challenging situations. He described a time when he
and Arthur, then six years old, were caught in whiteout
conditions during a January hike in New Hampshires
Presidential Mountains. The storm covered their
tracks with blown-in snow, so they relied on their GPS
receiver to navigate back to safety.
The Harrises encountered new climbing opportunities
in 2011 when they moved to Colorado. It was a dream
come true, said Doug. Its fun to have such a good

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supply of big mountains. He and Arthur are in the high

country almost every weekend, hiking and climbing
even in the deep snow of the Rocky Mountain winter.
Like many Colorado climbers, Doug and Arthur enjoy
keeping track of the mountains that they summit,
especially the states peaks above 14,000 ft (4,267 m).
Known as 14ers, the mountains beauty and challenge
attract thousands of people each year. By Dougs
count, they have summited about 40 of the peaks in
the three years since moving to the state. Surprisingly,
the big mountains come with some controversy.
To be considered an officially-ranked 14er, a peak must
be higher than 14,000 ft and must also have at least
300 ft (91 m) of topographical prominence. This means
that the mountain must be at least 300 ft higher than
the nearest saddle or low point. Colorado is home to
53 peaks that meet the two criteria and a handful of
others that are sufficiently high but lack the required
topographical prominence.
So, whats the controversy? In the circles of climbers
on social media, some people question if certain
Colorado peaks really are higher than 14,000 ft. For
example, Sunshine Peak is listed at 14,001 and Huron
Peak at 14,003. Other people point to peaks such as
North Mount Massive, which easily exceeds 14,000
feet but lacks the required prominence. Doug said
that some climbers have gone so far as to question
the accuracy of the heights, which are determined
and published by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).

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evenings, climbing on Saturday and Sunday and then

returning home on Sunday night.

The questions appealed to Doug and Arthurs curiosity

and deep interest in science and mathematics. They
knew that GPS could determine the heights of the
mountains. But they also understood that their
simple personal navigation unit could not provide
the precision needed to settle the arguments. So
Doug, reached out to experts at the Trimble Rockies
campus, which is located less than five miles from the
Harris home.

Arthur took charge of making the GPS measurements

on the mountain peaks and nearby saddles. Wearing
the lightweight backpack with the GPS antenna
calibrated to his height, he collected the needed data
and confirmed it was stored before the pair moved
on. Even the descents were challenging. Although
they wore microspikes and carried ice axes, safety was
a concern. When heading down Grizzly Peak, Doug
recalled crossing a particularly steep, icy spot that
ended atop a cliff. A fall would have meant serious
trouble.

Trimble agreed to provide a Trimble Geo7X GNSS

handheld with external antenna and Trimble GPS
Pathfinder Office software. The Harrises wanted to
achieve accuracy of roughly one foot (30 cm) and the
Geo7X solution could deliver the needed precision.
After a few hours training on field procedures and
office processing, they were ready to measure some
mountains.

After making it safely home, they downloaded the Geo7X

data to GPS Pathfinder Office, processed it and sent their
results to Trimble for review and confirmation. Their
measurements agreed with the published elevations.
Two oft-questioned mountains, Sunshine and Huron
Peaks, are indeed higher than 14,000 ft. North Mount
Massive does not have sufficient prominence to be
considered a 14er. And Grizzly Peak remains close, but
not quite to 14,000 ft. Doug was interested in how well
their measurements agreed with the published data.
I didnt expect the USGS data to be as accurate as it
turned out to be, he said. It was surprising to see what
the older technologies could do.

In October and November 2014, the pair carried the

equipment to the mountains they had targeted as
questionable. Too late for the prime climbing weather
of late summer and autumn, the Harrises hurried
to complete their work before heavy winter snows
took hold. Even so, most of their ascents involved
snow-covered slopes, cold temperatures and icy
scree. Working around Arthurs school schedule, they
typically drove to a location and camped on Friday

The Harrises used topographic maps like this one to plan their climb to check required prominence on Massive Saddle and North Massive. Although
several locations on Mount Massive are higher than 14,000 feet, only its highest point meets the criteria to be called a Colorado 14er.

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Arthur Harris nears the summit of Sunshine Peak. Early snows in the fall produced challenging
conditions for the climbers.

One person who was not surprised

is Steve Reiter, a geographer
with the USGS in Denver. Reiter
explained that most of Colorados
highest mountains were measured
between 1953 and 1970. Experts
used precise surveying theodolites
and procedures to measure vertical
angles to the summits. Although
seemingly dated by todays standards,
the optical technologies produced
excellent results. I work with people
who are retracing old maps and
measurements, Reiter said. They
often come to me saying, Wow,
those guys back then were really
good. The Harrises measurements
confirmed the earlier work and
came well within the original map
tolerances. The guysand their
equipment and methodshave
stood the test of time.
Arthur enjoyed the project as well as
learning how to use the advanced
GPS equipment. He looks forward to
making many more climbs. I learned
a lot about how accurate GPS can
be, he said. Its always nice to be in
the mountains, and 14ers are great
places to be.

Doug and Arthur Harris celebrate a successful ascent in Montana. They spend most of their weekends
camping and hiking in the mountains.

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So far, Arthur has been to the highest

points in 49 of the 50 United States.
The one peak he hasnt visited yet?
Its Denali in Alaska. At 20,236 ft,
(6,168 m), Denali is the highest point
in North America and Doug said that
it is most definitely on their list. But
Arthur needs to grow a bit more
in order to handle the 80-pound
(36 kg) backpack, difficult terrain
and extreme conditions that make
the Denali ascent one of the most
challenging on the continent. When
Arthur and Doug do stand on Denalis
summit, theyll be sure to record the
event with GPS.

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A Fast
Flow of
Data

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f you need some information about the water and sewer

system in Southaven, Mississippi, ask Ray Humphrey. Hes
the one person who knows everything about Southavens
pipes, pumps, manholes, meters and valves.

To provide precise navigation for its field technicians, Southaven uses a Trimble GeoExplorer 6000 series GNSS handheld
and Trimble TerraSync software. The real-time precision of the
Trimble handheld aids crews in locating crucial valves buried
by landscaping or in flooded intersections.

The City of Southaven lies just across the border from Memphis,
Tennessee. From 2000 to 2010, suburban expansion and the strong
Memphis economy helped Southaven to grow from 29,000
to 49,000 residents. Along with the growth came new and
expanded infrastructure including roads, utilities, and recreational amenities.

Southavens Utilities Division is planning to share the benefits

of its new solution. The citys fire department can utilize information on fire hydrants, valves and flow rates. Engineers can
use the data to identify areas of inflow and infiltration into the
sewers. And the accurate position information is invaluable for
the utility technicians who respond to 10 to 15 requests for
utility field locations each day.

As director of the Southaven Utilities Division, Humphrey

oversees the operation and maintenance of the water and
sewer system that serves roughly 45,000 people in the citys
88 sq. km (34 sq. mi). With his deep knowledge of the Divisions
facilities and operations, Humphrey recognized that the city
and its residents would benefit from a GIS-based approach to
help locate and manage the utility system assets.

Humphrey expects rapid payback and long-term benefits from

the GIS and Trimble GeoXH 6000 handheld. Knowing what
you have and where it is in real time is invaluable, he said. We
can easily share accurate information across departments and
throughout the city.

Humphrey knew that GIS could assist the city in two ways.
First, Southaven would maintain accurate, up-to-date data on
its water and sewer facilities. Second, the information would
be immediately available to people who need it, within and
outside of the Utilities Division. The city teamed with the U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) in a joint effort to produce
a comprehensive study of the citys water and sewer systems.
Southaven contracted local consulting firm Civil-Link to gather
data and implement a GIS on nearly 25,000 valves, meters and
manholes. Civil-Link used data collected with Trimble R10 and
R6 GNSS systems to develop a GIS. Using feature libraries on
their Trimble TSC3 controllers, the teams captured data on
valves, meters, hydrants, manholes and pump stations.
Civil-Link crews send field data directly to the office for processing, quality control and transfer into Esri ArcMap software.
Civil-Link then developed a custom website for Southaven.
Using smartphones or tablets, Southaven Utilities Division staff
can log into the website to view maps and access information
in the field at any time.
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Streamlining
Mobile
Data
New cost-efficient technologies are
transforming work processes

Operating on consumer smart devices, Trimble TerraFlex

provides flexible data collection and increased efficiency.

hen Apple shipped its first iPhone, the new device

became an immediate and enduring success. In the
ensuing years, consumers have come to expectand
demandinstant access to information, entertainment and
personal communications. Today these expectations extend to
the world of geospatial information.
Geospatial professionals for years have used specialized computers and software for their work in the field. The need for
accurate mobile dataquickly collected and made available
whenever and wherever it is neededis among the most
important trends in the geospatial world. That trend is accelerating, and the flood of consumer devices is changing the way
mobile data is gathered, managed and shared.
The Customized Cloud
Organizations can encounter obstacles in efficiently collecting
and using geospatial data. The wide variety in workflows
and information combines with the physical separation of
work in field and office to produce challenges in enterprise
management. To meet these challenges, a wide variety of flexible
solutions have emerged. It starts with customized software.
Organizations often need multiple functions (data collection,
guidance to field workers, inspection and supervision, etc.)
and current, accurate information on their field devices. These
needs can be addressed with a two-pronged approach. First,
rather than relying on vendors for specialized software, users
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can customize their software to meet their own needs. Second,

by using Cloud-based services and technologies, organizations
can exchange information quickly and securely.
A good illustration is Trimble TerraFlex field software. TerraFlex
provides customizable data collection software and Cloud
services to manage and combine data from different activities.
For example, a water utility can customize TerraFlex workflows
to collect data on the diverse assets of sanitary sewers
and stormwater and then blend the information to create
comprehensive datasets of underground assets. Field data is
transferred to the Cloud for access by office staff and other
field crews. Using the Cloud, data can be transferred to multiple
formats or integrated into other systems. Similarly, for electric
utilities, collecting information on vegetation under power lines
is much different than counting inventory of equipment on
power poles. When the seemingly unrelated data is combined,
it provides valuable information for maintenance and enterprise
operations.
While its clear that software flexibility plays a major role in mobile
data collection, many organizations are also looking at the hardware components of their field operations. The iPhone unleashed
a flood of consumer-style devices and workflows, and people
recognized that the smartphone could provide a new platform
for commercial applications. Many companies issue smartphones
to employees for basic communications, and many take it a step
farther by using smartphones and tablets as field devices.
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By running professional-grade apps such as TerraFlex for data

collection and management, the devices become efficient,
task-focused tools. Many workers own smartphones and some
companies have adopted a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD)
strategy, which uses company-provided software running on their
employees personal devices.

The challenge is to enable workers to use familiar devices while

providing positioning in more places and with higher precision
than a smartphone. The new Trimble R1 GNSS receiver, used
in conjunction with a smartphone or field computer, solves
this problem. The Trimble R1 can provide positioning with
precision and reliability that meets the needs of GIS, utilities,
asset management and many other applications.

Whether a smartphone is company-owned or BYOD, the key

is the common operating systems such as iOS, Android and
Windows. By supporting these popular operating systems,
developers of geospatial apps enable companies to create
workflows that provide consistent operation and output even
though the field workers may carry different types of devices.

Transported in a pocket or belt pouch, the R1 can be mounted

on a rod or placed directly on an object to capture positions
with sub-meter accuracy. The GNSS receiver streams positions
via Bluetooth to the users smart device. The receiver can
be configured and controlled from the smart deviceyes,
theres an app for thatand can be readily transferred from
one user to another. In doing so, the Trimble R1 protects an
organizations investment in positioning while allowing it to
keep pace with rapid changes in smartphone technology. The
solution provides an increased level of function and flexibility
to collectors and consumers of geospatial information.

A crucial tradeoff can be durability. It can be addressed by using

rugged, professional-grade devices that combine commercial
software with the familiar look and feel of a personal device.
These solutions provide smartphone functionality and
popular operating systems as well as positioning accuracy,
visibility in sunlight and ability to operate in challenging
environmentscharacteristics not found in many consumergrade products.

The new trendscustomization and Cloud-based operation;

consumer-style hardware and software; and support for precise
locationscan continue to expand the role of geospatial
information in enterprise management. The variety of products
and solutions can enable organizations to find or develop
systems that tightly fit their needs.

Theres another reason why many organizations are turning to

smartphones and tablets as field devices: the increasing use of
geographic locations in field workflows. But smartphones are
not always the best tools for positioning.

In addition to the long-term benefits in productivity and

streamlined processes, customized solutions provide front-end
savings in time and cost needed to implement the improved
workflows and data management. As you take a close look at
your business, you may discover that new tools for productivity
are already at your fingertips.

As more organizations add geospatial information to their

enterprise solutions, demand for reliable and accurate
geo-location will increase. This demand can rapidly outstrip
the positioning capabilities of most consumer devices, which
typically provide precision of a few meters.

A technician uses a Trimble R1 GNSS receiver paired with

his Android smartphone to collect field information.

TerraFlex workflows run on smart devices to

add efficiency to data collection.
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A technician enters customized information on

her smartphone. Positions from a Trimble R1 can
increase accuracy and reliabilty.
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A New Light
on Utility Mapping
GIS technicians in Columbia County, Georgia can
map buried fiber cables as fast as they can walk
even in dense tree canopy. Thanks to a Trimble
GNSS solution, the county has realized a four-fold
improvement in data collection productivity.

Howard said that a fiber mapping crew used an underground-line-locating device to detect the buried fiber and
mark its location. Then the crew recorded the location using
the handheld GeoXH unit running Esri ArcPad with Trimble
GPScorrect data collection software.

Putting Floodlight to Work

The dense forest in the county had long provided challenging conditions for GIS technicians. Satellite shadow, caused
when tall buildings or dense tree canopies deflect or block
signals coming from GNSS satellites, was a common problem
that sapped productivity in GIS data collection. By using
GeoXH receivers with Trimble Floodlight technology, which
is designed to mitigate the effects of satellite shadow, county
GIS technicians experienced significant improvements in
performance.

n 2010, Columbia County received $13 million to fund a

broadband project to tie county buildings, utilities, schools,
libraries and traffic control infrastructure into a common
communications network. The project included 350 km
(220 miles) of buried fiber cable and five wireless relay towers
spread across the 307 square-mile (795 square-km) county in
eastern Georgia.
Already a prolific user of geospatial technology, the county
GIS department was prepared to inventory the new cable
during construction of the 350-km (220-mile) route. According
to County GIS Manager Mary Howard, Columbia Countys GIS
asset inventorydeveloped since 1998 using Trimble GPS
productshas allowed management to optimally assess
collection areas and plan construction methodologies. At the
time of the broadband implementation, the GIS department
had just purchased several Trimble GeoXH 6000 handheld data
collectors for other existing utility projects. The new equipment
would help solve the challenges of collecting and managing
the fiber cable data in the heavily wooded terrain.

Before the Floodlight technology, it would take 30 minutes to

an hour just to collect a point under canopy, even with the
Trimble Zephyr external antenna, said Howard. On some
days, canopy and satellite availability conspired to limit work to
small windows during a day.
Using Floodlight, technicians rarely needed external antennas
to supplement their data collectors. In addition to improvements from Floodlight, data from the Trimble NetR9 GNSS
reference station enables the GeoXH to nearly double the total
number of satellites used for tracking and positioning. You
dont have to stand there and wait, Howard explained. Its
amazing to see how quickly youre receiving 10-cm [4-inch]
accuracy. Using Trimble GPScorrect, the GeoXH constantly
monitors the accuracy of collected positions, alerting the
operator If accuracy is less than required limits. This lets the
user know to slow down or stop until signal quality improves,
said Howard.

The countys upgraded GNSS capabilities also included a new

Trimble NetR9 GNSS reference receiver to serve as the county
Continuously Operating Reference Station (CORS). The permanent base station broadcasts real-time correction signals for
use in GIS and mapping as well as surveying and other applications. Our GIS technicians use real-time corrections during
data collection, said Howard. We have found excellent return
on investment for both staffing time during collections as well
as the importance of having a reliable end-product.
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County GIS/GPS Technician Ernie Phelps added that a technician could look at the display screen on the GeoXH unit to
determine what the point accuracy was at any time. According
to Phelps, Floodlight technology, combined with the real-time
differential corrections from the Trimble NetR9, allowed field
technicians to keep moving and collect data almost continuously regardless of canopy cover. On the broadband lines, GIS
technicians collected fiber location data at a rate of about 1.6
km (1 mile) every 15 minutes. Thats a pace equivalent to a brisk
walk. Previously, linear GPS collection required about one hour
to cover the same distance.
The system produced similar time savings in the office. After
a day in the field, GIS technicians downloaded their data to
a desktop computer running Trimble Positions software.
A technician could examine the accuracy of each individual point, quickly identifying and eliminating any errors or
outliers. Once the data was reviewed for accuracy, Trimble
Positions added the fiber location points into the Esri GIS,
checking the new data into the appropriate layer in the GIS.
For every hour we spend mapping in the field, we spend 15
minutes editing the data, said Howard. We are thrilled with
how easy the Trimble Positions software is. It has added to
our efficiency in the office and has cut the time required to
process the data by half.
The broadband cable information is a valuable addition to the
county GIS. In planning new development, the county can
accurately forecast the scope of work for cable relocations.
And knowing the exact location of buried cables can also help
prevent damage to the cables caused by construction in the
fast-growing county.
Growth and development will continue in Columbia County.
Thanks to its new asset inventory, Howard and her team can
quickly show where the broadband cables are buried, helping
management to determine the best locations for new lines. Its
all because of an accurate GIS that can be updated with a quick
walk in the woods.

The countys GNSS reference station provides corrections for GIS

and other positioning activities.
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Making Footpaths
Safer in Whitehorse

Geospatial technology helps to ensure no cracks appear in an

Australian citys asset management system

ts a simple, yet crucial activity. Most people assume that their local infrastructure such
as roads, footpaths, parklands and public facilities will be cared for. In reality, regular
maintenance of these assets involves significant investment in terms of time, money and
resources. It also demands regular monitoring and a coordinated approach to
planning and executing asset renewal, upgrades and repairs in a timely
manner. However, an Australian city is using geospatial technology to
help maintain infrastructure and keep its citizens safe.
Located near Melbournes eastern suburbs, the City of Whitehorse
was mainly developed in the 1950s and 60s. The development
included construction of a network of footpaths (also referred
to as sidewalks) through neighborhoods, commercial areas,
bushland and parks.
Today, Whitehorse has an estimated 1,180 km (730 mi) of footpaths
serving a geographic area roughly the size of Manhattan. Many
footpaths are aging and require maintenance and upgrades. Tripping
hazards caused by damaged and cracked concrete due to the expansion
of tree roots present a public liability concern, particularly for elderly
residents and vision-impaired and disabled pedestrians. With roughly 22
percent of Whitehorses 160,000 residents 65 years of age and older, footpath
safety is a public health issue and a key priority for the Whitehorse Council.
For years, the Councils system for managing footpath maintenance was a
manual, paper-based system that employed contractors and data-entry clerks.
Today, it is a fully integrated digital data collection workflow and database system
that is managed end-to-end by the Councils in-house City Works Department.

Eliminating Paper Increases Efficiency

Like all municipalities in the state of Victoria, Whitehorse must comply with the regulations
and obligations of the Road Management Act of 2004. The Council reports regularly on the
quality and condition of footpaths and its process for organizing and prioritizing maintenance.
When cracks appear, Council must act in accordance with the plan. For serious tripping hazards such
as defects with a vertical displacement greater than 40 mm (1.5 in), the plan requires temporary repair
to be completed within five working days. Failure to comply impacts both the Councils performance
rating and risk of financial liability. When the Council relied on a paper-based approach to manage the
condition and upkeep of its footpaths, it faced inefficiencies in meeting compliance requirements with its
Road Management Plan.
Whitehorse Manager of City Works Ilias Kostopoulos explained that previously no digital records existed
to accurately identify and record defects for the citys planning and work order processes. Information
collected using the paper-based system passed through several pairs of hands, including external
contractors, causing delays and community dissatisfaction. Ownership of the manual, paper-based
system was challenging and affected performance requirements and response times of the plan,
Kostopoulos said. To bring footpath management practices in line with the Councils Road Management
Plan required adoption of a coordinated, automated approach and elimination of the paper-only trail.
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The location of footpath defects can be viewed on simple maps or with orthophoto backgrounds. Details on type and severity of hazards
are recorded for each location.

Field-to-Office Workflow
In 2009 the Councils Asset Management Strategy Team and
City Works Officers worked with Australian geospatial company
UPG to implement a high-accuracy, GPS data-capture solution
with a fully integrated field-to-office workflow. The system
uses Trimble GPS handheld receivers for field data collection
together with application software that provides fast, accurate
information flow.

can correlate the date and frequency of inspection with details

for every defect identified including maintenance response times.
The result is a far more proactive and responsive process that
illustrates the Councils innovative approach to managing and
delivering its obligations under its Road Management Plan. The
program has consistently demonstrated compliance with the Road
Management Plan and has earned Council a six-out-of-six rating in
a recent insurance audit.

In the field, the data collection process is built around Trimble

TerraSync field data capture software and Trimble GPS Pathfinder
Office software. The Councils City Works asset inspector uses a
Trimble GeoXH 6000 series handheld computer to record the
distinct attributes of each defectits location, size, severity of
the hazard and time and date of inspection. Entering data is a
simple process utilizing check boxes and pull-down menus
on the handheld unit. The collected data includes photos and
locations accurate to 10 cm (4 in). Our asset inspector has
the perfect tool to quickly and easily record the attributes of a
footpath defect. He loves it, Kostopoulos said.

Beyond the auditors score, Whitehorse City Council is also in a

better position to manage risk of public liability associated with
footpath usage. Because a single inspector can carry out all the
field inspection work, the Council no longer needs to employ
contractors for inspection, further reducing labor costs.

Based on the success of the City Works footpaths program,

Whitehorse plans to use the system for other areas of the
Councils Corporate Asset Management System. Council Asset
Management Strategy Coordinator David Braby said, This is the
obvious next stepusing the technology for our broader asset
management system. The system for inspecting and intaining
Each night the collected data is transferred into the Councils footpaths will soon expand to infrastructure assets including
database. The most severe trip hazards are automatically flagged parks, street furniture, public facilities, sporting fields, street
so temporary make-safe work can be carried out in accordance lighting, car parks and gardens.
with the regulations. The office software tracks the defects
through completion of repairs, closing the loop on each record
and enabling auditors to measure the efficiency of the asset
management system.
Kostopoulos said that the City Works asset inspector uses the
Trimble solution to capture other maintenance information during
programmed footpath inspectionsrecording data such as
overhanging trees that need pruning, damaged curb and gutter,
potholes or vegetation growth that affects footpath access and
safety. Ultimately, the program ensures that safety and renewal
projects are efficiently prioritized, planned, coordinated and executed.
Expanding The Program
From a regulatory standpoint, the technology has delivered a
dramatic improvement in the Citys Road Management Plan
scorecard. With more than 85,000 documented cases, auditors
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Green dots show location of footpath defects, which are

automatically flagged for action.
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Creating
a New
Normal

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ased in West Palm Beach, the South Florida Water

Management District (SFWMD) covers 16 counties
stretching from Orlando to the Florida Keys, including
the unique and intricate Everglades freshwater wetland.
The oldest and largest of the states five water management
districts, the 67-year-old SFWMD strives to maintain a delicate
balance between safeguarding the water needs of the natural
environment and the competing water-supply demands of 8.1
million residents.

Looking south at the southern half of the Kissimmee River restoration area. The
KRRP aims to return a natural flow to 40 miles of the river and restore about
25,000 acres of wetlands by 2019. Photo credit: Brent Anderson -SFWMD

As part of its extensive responsibilities for south Floridas waterrich environment, the District has been at the helm of significant
natural resource initiatives. One of the most ambitious initiatives
is the Kissimmee River Restoration Project (KRRP), which aims to
repair detrimental damages from past overly aggressive floodcontrol measures.
With the scope of the KRRP and the extent of its monitoring
areaabout 17,000 hectares (44,200 acres)the SFWMD
created the lakes and river ecosystems section (LRES) in 2006
to act as a dedicated team to evaluate environmental changes
and ensure the ecology of the region is thriving throughout the
restoration phases.
Measuring the environmental successes, however, was a
significant challenge for LRES personnel because they were
trying to monitor and map a very fluid environment with static,
labor-intensive toolspaper notebooks and maps, hard-copy
geospatial imagery and consumer-grade GPS technology.
That all changed, however, in 2015. After a ten-year digital
transformation designed to bring data-collection efficiency,
versatility and accuracy to the LRES, the department
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Map of the KRRP area and its restoration-phase schedule.

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implemented a new technological solution: a Trimble R1 GNSS

receiver connected via Bluetooth to an iPad running the Esri
Collector for ArcGIS app.
The new combination of iPads paired with R1 GNSS receivers
has not only shredded the paper trail for the LRES, its giving staff
the smart tools they need to more efficiently and accurately
monitor and map diverse vegetation species in the KRRP and
produce deliverables with higher confidence.
Boatloads of Data
Given the size of the KRRP monitoring area, the LRES uses both
airboats and helicopters to survey and map the vegetation
field work that is coordinated with aerial surveys flown every
three years for large area coverage. The focus is on studying
and mapping the predominant emergent vegetationplants
above the soil or water surface which is a key indicator of the
ecosystems overall health.
Historically, staff needed to print out reams of paper before
embarking on their field assessments. However, for the 2015
field surveys, LRES environmental scientist Lawrence Spencer
fielded the new Trimble R1/iPad combination.
Rather than printing paper, Spencer loaded the iPad with all
the relevant apps and maps he needed. Traveling by airboat,
he used the R1 in combination with the iPad to navigate to
predetermined sample areas. Once at a location, he stopped,
located the center of the vegetation cluster and captured a
precise GNSS ground-control point (GCP) of that population,
which was stored into the Collector app to provide an accurate
position for mapping that vegetation class. Using templates,
Spencer recorded an array of attributes such as the plant type, its
areal extent and its health, and he attached photos of the area.
Data collection complete, he navigated to the next location
and recorded the vegetation there, a process he repeated every
week for about six hours a day from April to June.

Lawrence Spencer idles in an airboat with the Trimble R1 and an iPad.

Using the R1 receiver, Spencer collected around 475 submeter-accuracy GCPsabout three times the number of
GCPs he could acquire previously. The GCPs are used both
to generate signatures for air-photo-based vegetation
classifications and to assess the accuracy of the final
vegetation maps produced.
The GNSS technology allows me to take more points, and
higher-quality points, in the time we have, says Spencer. These
points allow me to create spectral signatures so I can better
distinguish individual plant classes on the air photos and map
them across the whole restoration site.
And More from the Air
In between airboat trips, Spencer also carried out vegetation
surveys with a helicopter.
Once he reached a predetermined location, the pilot hovered
over the wetland and Spencer collected several GCPs with

The new data-collection tools for the 2015 fieldwork: the Trimble R1 and an
iPad in use in a helicopter.

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A collage of vegetation data points collected along the KRRP

monitoring area.

the R1 receiver, recorded plant attributes and took pictures of

the vegetation belowall within less than 90 seconds. Then
he flew on to the next sample area. In all, Spencer collected
another 450 GCPs from the helicopter, giving him about 900
data points for the final maps.

A wood ibis enjoying the results of the KRRP effort.

to map the wetland vegetation. This time, he will transfer all of

the data points he collected in the fieldalong with the 2015
aerial imageryinto eCognition to automatically classify and
map the vegetation.

With only four hours per flight in which to collect data over the
whole KRRP study area, efficiency is critical. The new system
enables him to collect more information in less timewith
less crew.

With significantly more sub-meter accuracy data points, Ill

be able to classify the vegetation much more accurately and
quickly, says Spencer. And Ill be able to repeat and customize
this process to produce any type of map needed. This flexibility
and detail will help to better measure how well the vegetation
and wildlife is responding to the KRRP.

In the past, Id have another colleague, a laptop running Esris

ArcPad, an old backpack GPS unit and paper maps in the
helicopter, says Spencer. I often couldnt take data points fast
enough so I hand-wrote notes while my colleague took pictures
of the vegetation. And we usually needed the full four hours
to complete the work. With the R1 and iPad, we have reduced
flight times by nearly 50 percent and I can acquire all the data,
including photos, myself.

The Trimble R1 and iPad combination has not only improved

the data-collection efficiency and the ability to readily share
information within the LRES, it has also attracted other
colleagues at SFWMD who see the benefits of this versatile
system for their own work. The combined system may indeed
become the new normal for acquiring data in the field.

In addition to the new field system, Spencer is also developing

a more automated and accurate map production system using
Trimbles eCognition image analysis and land classification
software. Historically, Spencer manually drew polygons around
vegetation populations on the digital infrared air photos, named
each one by its signature and then used those specific polygons

Although we have paired the Trimble R1 with iPads, we could

easily use it with any smartphone or mobile device, says
Spencer. And its so easy to use, I could pull people off the
street and have them use it.
It seems more technological transformations may begin
flowing through the SFWMD in the future.

Snowy egrets are a main wading-bird target of the LRES aerial surveys. Photo credit: Brent Anderson -- SFWMD
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technology&more

Ditching the Pen and Paper

A Canadian organization adopts digital mobile
technology to capture and share valuable data

The Trimble Juno provided in-field maps

and guidance for MVCA teams.

he Mississippi Valley Conservation Authority (MVCA) in

Ontario, Canada, is responsible for 4,450 km2 (1,720 mi2)
of watershed area for the Mississippi and Carp Rivers,
which flow into the Ottawa River just west of the Canadian
capital of Ottawa. The MVCAs mission is to balance the
needs of watershed users with those of the environment
it safeguards drinking water, protects local ecosystems and
private property, and supports recreational activities.

The app was Trimbles TerraFlex mobile app, which the MVCA
chose to run on a Trimble Juno series handheld. The Juno is a
solid piece of equipment, said Broadbent. Its water-resistant,
plus its GNSS capability gives us better location accuracy than a
smartphone.

In its City Stream Watch program the MVCA is studying water

quality in urban areas. Teams monitor urban shorelines and
streams to gather information on water clarity and pH levels,
fish species and numbers, vegetation density and more. Their
visual observations inform critical management decisions, so
data accuracy is important.

From River to Cloud

On the City Watch Program, monitoring staff begin by creating
their own TerraFlex data collection forms. Each form contains
fields for features and conditions such as crew name, date and
time, water quality parameters and other notes. Then, taking a
sample every 50 m (160 ft), teams record the water conditions of
urban streams, gathering data on clarity, pH level, the presence
of oxygen and water temperature. They also record the accurate
location of features and take geo-referenced digital photos.

Keeping Data Safe and Dry

Until recently, MVCA staff recorded information using simple
pen and paper. However, because their work is physical and
often challengingindividuals wearing water gear scramble
up and down banks and wade into flowing waterthis method
was problematic.

The collected data is transferred to the Cloud for access by

colleagues such as those in MVCAs GIS team. Transfer takes
place automaticallyif data has been collected while the staff
user is offline, TerraFlex synchronizes the information as soon
as he or she is online again. The MVCA is spared hours of data
processing time.

Wet paper was only one hazard to be avoided on the job. Overall,
errors could be introduced into MVCA data in three ways: when
data was recorded in the field; when data was manually entered
from paper records into an electronic database; and when GIS
staff interpreted and transcribed their field colleagues notes.
But then the MVCA learned of a way to record data online via a
mobile app. When colleagues at a local authority shared how
mobile technology helped them, we immediately recognized a
need ourselves, said MVCA Information Technology Supervisor
Alex Broadbent.

TerraFlex provides our City Watch employees with a workflow

that keeps the data accurate and makes the entire process
much faster, said Broadbent.
Achieving the Mission
More accurate datacollected and communicated more
effectivelyis helping the MVCA achieve its goals for the City
Watch Program. And ultimately, by enabling the Authority to
make better-informed decisions, this modern approach to
recording monitoring data will help them achieve their overall
mission for balanced watershed management.
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When the GNSS Mapping App You

Want Doesnt Exist, Make One
Gas inspectors use GNSS and mobile apps to collect data and produce maps instantly

uestar Gas is a natural gas distribution company

servicing Utah, southwestern Wyoming and
a small portion of southeastern Idaho. The
company employs approximately 880 people; Tren Giles
is Operations Supervisor of the GPS Support/Inspection
group with 15 gas inspectors working for him.

along the pipe, the wire can break so we still need to do

an as-built.
Where Is That Pipe?
The consequences of not knowing precisely where gas
pipelines are located are well knownQuestar Gas crews,
or third parties, are then unable to prevent damage
from occurring or to respond quickly to repair faulty or
damaged pipes. Time wasted searching for pipelines is
another cost. We simply have to be able to locate that
line, says Giles.

Utahs population of 2.9 million is one of the fastestgrowing in the U.S. So Questar Gas must meet a constant
demand for new pipeline in residential and commercial
developments, and replace aged existing pipeline as
needed.

To produce as-built pipeline maps in the past, Questar

Gas inspectors used to measure distances with a tape
measure, tied pipe locations to local features such as
buildings, curbs or fences, then roughly hand-sketch
a map on the job. They drew the map a second time,
often from the company vehicle, in simple CAD software
on a laptop. A post-mapping team then drew the map

Questar Gas tracks, locates and records pipeline and

uses this as-built information to manage maintenance,
communicate asset location to third parties, and pay
contractors. We need to record where pipes are because
we cant locate plastic pipes underground once theyre
laid, says Giles. Although we run a copper tracer wire
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a third time. This process was labor-intensive, eight weeks

long, and vulnerable to human error. And it delayed the
communication of information to third parties such as Call
Before You Dig companies.
Questar Gas wanted to improve accuracy and produce
maps faster by collecting positioning information with
GNSS to integrate with existing data into the companys Esri
database. But no software solutions were available to fully
meet its needs.
Creating the Solution
With the assistance of their Trimble distributor, Questar Gas
reached out to CartoPac, a software development team
in Fort Collins, Colorado, to help create a mobile app for
mapping gas pipelines. CartoPac has expertise in using
the Trimble GPS Pathfinder Field toolkit to create GIS
applications.
The project included workflow and application development,
as well as training the gas inspectors to be mapping experts.
Within a few months Questar Gas had a working model
for mapping services, mains and structures. The data they
captureaccurate to within 4 to 6 inches (10 to 15 cm)is
standardized and immediately accessible in the companys
Esri GIS database by company crews, support personnel,
construction contractors, third-party location services and
leak survey inspectors.

In the CartoPac app, inspectors complete data-collection

forms that cannot be exited until the workflow is completed.
This constraint ensures all data is traceable, verifiable
and complete for quality and peace of mind. Our chief
compliance officer loves what were doing, says Giles. Hes
one of our biggest supporters. Because data collection is
standardized and consistent, the results are not open to
interpretation. This further ensures data accuracy.
I also have to say the georeferenced photos are one of
my favorite aspects of using GPS, says Giles. The cameras
in the tip of the unit, so in the CartoPac-built workflow our
inspectors can take a wide view of the riser location and
then the service tap. Its really nice to have this picture to
show whats put in the ground. The photos ensure against
claims made towards the company for transgressions such
as window breakages or incorrectly installed equipment.
Excellent Results
Since 2012, Questar Gas has used its new application to map
49,853 services and 1,605 mi (2,583 km ) of mains, all within
an accuracy of 4 inches.
Its a simple fact that we now know where our gas line is
buried, says Giles. Plus weve dramatically improved our
productivity, information accuracy, compliance practice,
safety and overall asset management. We optimally manage
our pipeline from laying to retirement.

Questar Gas runs its mapping application on a mix of

Trimble GeoExplorer 6000 series handhelds and the more
recent Geo 7X handhelds. We use our Trimble equipment
as hard as or harder than anyone else, says Giles. Most
Trimble systems are used 8 to 10 hours a day, 5 to 6 days per
week. The handhelds are run on a rover pole with a Trimble
Zephyr antenna. If inspectors are unable to collect a point by
positioning the rover pole over it, for example, at the corner
of a building, then they use a laser rangefinder also attached
to the pole.
Questar Gas connects to Utahs Trimble VRS network, which
provides real-time, 4-inch accuracy through a network
of land-based reference stations. Where the network is
not available, GNSS data is postprocessed for 4- to 6-inch
accuracy by the next day. We went with a real-time workflow
so we could know what was being collected straight away,
says Giles.
When pipe is laid, Questar Gas inspectors measure the asbuilt construction of pipelines before burial. At that time
inspectors are required to map, in Giles words, everything.
They dont just measure mains, he says. But every pipe,
fitting, and structure the gas is run to. They also tie the
location to as many features as possiblefire hydrants and
street lights, etc.
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TRIMBLE AND ESRI

Visit Trimble at the
2016 Esri International User Conference
San Diego, CA, 27 June1 July
Learn how Esri users leverage Trimble products and expertise to streamline
their workflows, boost accuracy in their fieldwork, and increase efficiency and
productivity to get the job done.

Click on trimble.com/esriworkflows for more information.

See you at Booth #425!

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